Cheney says Republicans against Trump but not backing Harris 'not enough'

Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) on Sunday urged Republicans who oppose former President Trump but do not publicly back Vice President Harris to "take the extra step" and endorse the vice president to prevent Trump's reelection.

"Given the closeness of this election, particularly if you're going to find yourself voting in a swing state, you've got to take the extra step if you really do recognize the threat that Donald Trump poses. Then it's not enough to simply say, 'I'm not going to vote for him,'" Cheney said on ABC News's "This Week."

Cheney, who became one of the most outspoken critics of Trump following the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, threw her support behind Harris last week and said she doesn't think "we have the luxury of writing in candidates' names."

"I would also remind them, you know what? It's a secret ballot. So, I would prefer to have as many people as possible publicly making the case," she said. "But at the end of the day, you just have to wrestle with your own conscience when you're there in the voting booth. And I would expect that you will see far more Republicans and independents, you know, when the time comes, and they've got to make that decision, make the right decision."

Some Republicans, meanwhile, have maintained they will not vote for Harris and will instead write somebody else in. This includes Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), former Vice President Mike Pence and GOP Maryland Senate candidate and former Gov. Larry Hogan (R-Md.).

Cheney's endorsement of Harris joins fellow anti-Trump Republicans such as former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) and Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan in publicly supporting the vice president. 

A day after Cheney officially announced her support for Harris, her father, former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney, also backed the vice president.

The former vice president said in the statement that Americans “have a duty” to defend the Constitution, regardless of political party.

“In our nation’s 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” he wrote. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He can never be trusted with power again."